What is Honour?

Contents

Honour

Honour is deep respect for worth – your own, and other people’s. It is about how you choose to behave, even when no one is watching. It links to ideas like integrity, fairness, honesty, courage, and respect.

What honour is

Living in a way that you can look yourself in the eye.
Treating others with basic respect, even when you disagree or gain nothing.
Keeping your word as best you can.
Refusing to do things that betray your core values, even if they would benefit you.
Honouring and enforcing one’s own boundaries, as well as those of others.

You can think of honour as your inner sense of “what is right,” plus the effort to act on it.

Honour towards yourself

Honouring yourself means:

Not throwing away your dignity for approval or advantage.
Refusing to lie to yourself about what hurts you or what you need.
Protecting your body, mind, and feelings from ongoing harm.
Acting in ways that match your values, not just your fears.

Examples:

Saying “no” to something that feels wrong, even if people are pushing you.
Admitting, “I was wrong there,” instead of defending a lie.
Leaving situations that constantly dishonour you.
Raising any concerns about boundary crosses, as soon as you notice them, and do so in an honest, forthright and respectful manner.

Honour towards others

Honouring others means:

Seeing their basic human worth, even when you’re angry or different.
Not using, humiliating, or betraying them for gain.
Keeping promises, or being honest when you can’t.
Respecting boundaries, privacy, and consent.

Examples:

Not sharing someone’s secrets just to feel powerful or included.
Paying people fairly if you can.
Giving credit when others have helped or contributed.
Not speaking about people in ways you’d be ashamed to say to their face.

Honour in daily choices

Honour is not only about big heroic acts; it shows up in small daily decisions:

Do you cheat, or stay honest when it would be easy not to?
Do you join in cruelty, or refuse, even if it costs you popularity?
Do you keep quiet when a weaker person is being hurt, or at least offer them support later?

You won’t get it right every time – no one does. Honour is more about trying to return to what you believe is right, making amends when you fall short.

Honour and You

In the context of yourself:

Honouring yourself means caring for your needs, telling yourself the truth, and not treating yourself as worthless.
Honouring others means empathy, fairness, and not using their pain as a prop.
Honouring the work (your growth) means showing up with sincerity, not just performing for praise.

In simple terms: Honour is living in a way that respects the value of life – yours and other people’s, even when it would be easier not to. It is the quiet line you try not to cross, so that, at the end of the day, you can say, “I may be imperfect, but I did my best not to betray what matters.”